The latest from Lego: Ninjago

ENFIELD, Conn. — Lego is bringing a new kind of ninja to game enthusiasts.

Ninjago, the newest Lego family member, combines the best of Lego construction play, action-based competitive play and virtual gaming. Ninjago tells the story of four young ninjas who train under the watchful eye of Sensei Wu to master an ancient martial art — Spinjitzu — the art of spinning into a human tornado, to save the world from the evil Lord Garmadon and his skeleton army.

"Ninjago merges three distinct play patterns into one integrated experience that seamlessly blends physical and virtual play to reinforce character, story, competition and engagement for children," said Soren Torp Laursen, president of Lego Systems. "We’re very excited to put a new spin on Lego play by opening a new world of creativity that caters perfectly to what today’s children expect from their play experiences."

Ninjago includes the following new products:

Competitive play: Children can build on their spinners, add their minifigures, use the trading cards to influence the outcome of the battle and choose their battle accessories before starting each Spinjitzu match. Six collectible spinners now are available with 10 more slated across launches in April and August. Each includes a spinner base, minifigure, accessories and a set of strategy cards for $9.99;

Construction play: Seven richly detailed building sets, centered on the storied locations of the Ninjago legend, are available now, ranging in price from $4.99 to $69.99. Four more play sets launch in August, ranging from $19.99 to $119.99;

Gaming: Lego Universe, the company’s massive multiplayer online game, will offer more ways to engage in the Ninjago legend by unlocking a new adventure zone, Crux Prime. The new zone is filled with fresh challenges and an original Ninjago storyline that will continue to unfold throughout the year and beyond so that Lego Universe players can enjoy the fun of Spinjitzu masters online.

Mobile checkstands: Next trend at retail?

FORT MILL, S.C. — According to the latest “Mobile POS Survey,” commissioned by Honeywell and conducted by Harris Interactive online in December, consumers are accepting of a mobile checkout offering at retail — 50% of those who have tried mobile checkouts believed it saves time and 43% liked the convenience of paperless receipts delivered via e-mail.

Based on the survey, as many as 72% of adults have been offered the opportunity to check out using mobile point-of-sale, where transactions are completed through mobile point-of-sale units using a mobile computer to scan items and then read a customer’s credit card information for payment, with the receipt printed via a mobile printer or sent directly to the consumer’s e-mail address. Additionally, the survey found that nearly 1-in-5 adults (17%) used credit cards for in-store purchases and would be interested in trying mobile POS.

“Over the past two years, Honeywell Scanning & Mobility has surveyed consumers to get their feedback on the latest trends in retail technology,” stated John Waldron, VP worldwide marketing for Honeywell scanning and mobility. “This year’s survey results [showed] a rising interest in mobile POS, and this is in line with the demand we are seeing in the industry. Honeywell is dedicated to supporting retailers in their implementation of innovative applications, such as mobile POS, by providing advanced scanners and mobile computers that help drive improved productivity and customer service.”

Increased interest in mobile couponing, another trend in the retail space, was uncovered in this year’s survey, in comparison to the results found in a similar survey conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of Honeywell in December 2009. The number of adults who own a mobile phone and said they were comfortable using their mobile phones to store coupons rather than printing them out increased from 11% in 2009 to 18% in 2010. Similarly, the number of adults who own a mobile phone and said they were interested in receiving coupons from retailers via their mobile phones increased from 8% to 14% in 2010.

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